


my sunshine

by Anonymous



Category: Persona 4, Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Daycare, First Kiss, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:21:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27357940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: “Oh, right! I saw Yosuke and Souji-sensei kissing —" Goro scrunches up his face "—and Souji-sensei told me that kissing is a way to show how much they care for each other and that because I care for you, I should kiss you!"Goro frowns. "Souji-sensei says that you should kiss me?" he asks hesitantly.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji, Kurusu Akira & Seta Souji
Comments: 6
Kudos: 130
Collections: Anonymous





	my sunshine

“Yo, Souji, how’re the squirts?”

Akira looks up from where he had been doodling a smiling sun on the pavement in front of Himawari Daycare to see the far-too-familiar face of one Hanamura Yosuke stride onto the property. If he didn’t know any better, he could be tricked into thinking that Yosuke worked there or something. He is much too comfortable just walking into places, acting like he owns them.

Souji looks up from where he was sticking a band-aid onto a sniffling Ann’s knee. “Oh, we’re all doing great. Right, Ann-chan?”

Ann looks like she’s seconds away from bursting into tears again but she nods, her lower lip quivering as she desperately holds it in. Ryuji, crouched next to her, tries to offer her his apology flower again, but Ann crosses her arms and looks away determinedly.

“Ann, I apologized!” Ryuji groans. “Sorry for pushing you!”

“No,” Ann says angrily, though her voice is thick from her crying bout earlier. “You made me get my new shirt all dirty. This was a gift from my dad, you know. It matches with Mako-chan and Haru-chan and Futaba-chan.”

“You can push me and get my dirty too!” Ryuji offers.

“No! It’s not the same.”

“There, there,’ Souji says, brushing a speck of dirt away from Ann’s soft cheek. ‘C’mon, Ann-chan. Ryuji-kun didn’t mean it.”

Yosuke hurries over and crouches down next to Souji. “Yeah, Ann-chan. What if Ryuji-kun promises to help you clean up the shirt? Would you forgive him then?”

Ryuji balks, his mouth dropping open as he stammers, “W-wait, I don’t wanna do laundry!”

The obvious nervousness in his expression must have been exactly what Ann wanted to see because she giggles, “Okay! But you have to make it really clean and soft!” She stands up, grabs a protesting Ryuji’s hand, and hurries away inside of the daycare centre.

That Yosuke was the one who came up with a solution to Ann and Ryuji’s problem might have shocked Akira months before, because Yosuke used to get all anxious around the kids when they cried. But now he’s practically a natural. No longer does he babble on about anything and everything, as if boring the kids to death would help, and the kids love him for his cheery disposition and his loud reactions to teasing.

Souji stands up and gives Yosuke a fond smile, leaning forward to peck him lightly on the cheek. “Thanks, Yosuke.”

Yosuke hooks an arm around Souji’s shoulders and brushes his face against Souji’s cheek affectionately. “I’m sure you could’ve handled it on your own, partner.”

Akira watches from the ground, his red chalk dangling loosely from his limp fingers, as Souji and Yosuke continue to stand there, practically hugging and kissing right in the middle of the daycare playground. Akira has, unfortunately, seen quite a lot of PDA from the two of them during his time at Himawari, and he’s sure that the other kids have had similar experiences. He can recall one incident when he woke up from nap-time a whole hour earlier and wandered into the kitchen for a glass of juice, only to see Yosuke pinning Souji down on the counter.

Fortunately, he managed to slip away before they could see him and start stammering out excuses and explanations. He doesn’t need to know that they’re trying to make a baby, thank you very much.

He watches the two of them now as they whisper into each other’s ears and smile, and the obvious joy in their faces make Akira’s heart pound faster in his little chest. He abandons his chalk drawing and wanders over to them.

“Why did you two kiss?” he asks.

Yosuke pushes himself away from Souji, his face flushed. “W-what?” he stammers. “What do you mean by that? Also, you were watching?”

“You two are standing out on the playground,” Akira points out. He gestures with his arm. “There are, like, ten other kids out here.”

“Hey, don’t you get smart with —”

“We kissed because we love each other,” Souji interrupts. His smile is serene and unaffected, as opposed to the way that Yosuke flushes even redder. Souji reaches out and loops an arm around Yosuke’s neck, reeling him close once more and pulling him flush against his body. “That’s how you show affection to someone that you like in a romantic way.”

“Souji, he’s like four years old. What are you _talking_ about?”

Akira narrows his eyes. “I’m five years old,” he says proudly. Yosuke should know this -- it isn’t like he’s been visiting for the past few months or anything.

“Yeah, sure,” Yosuke says, not sounding like he cares much at all. Akira can’t help but jut his bottom lip out in a pout but before he could say anything, Souji clears his throat.

“You like Goro a lot, right?” he asks.

This question brightens up Akira immediately. He _loves_ Goro! Ever since the older boy first arrived at the daycare, all quiet and covered in band-aids, he knew that he wanted to be friends with him. Even games that Akira normally has no interest in, such as chess or sudoku, become infinitely more interesting when Goro’s the one playing with him.

“I do!” he practically bellows, wanting to make sure that his affection for his best friend is clear.

He’s glad to see Yosuke cover his ears with his hands, because that just means that it was loud enough. He takes a deep breath to yell it again when Souji puts his hand on the top of his head and rubs. “I’m glad that you like Goro so much, Akira. Now run along and tell him how much you care for him. I’m sure he’ll be glad to hear that.”

Akira bounches on the balls of his feet, grinning from ear to ear at the idea of making Goro feel as warm as he does now. “Alright, thank you, Souji-sensei! Bye, Yosuke!” He ducks out from under Souji’s palm and runs back towards the daycare, where he last saw Goro.

“How come he never calls me Yosuke-san anymore?” he hears Yosuke complain behind him but he doesn’t stay long enough to hear what Souji’s reply is.

At the back of the daycare, Goro is flipping through a book. Even though it’s loud and raucous inside, Goro’s concentration is immersed in the fictional world that the pages depict. Out of the corner of Akira’s eye, he sees Ryuji and Ann making a tower together out of colourful blocks and he’s glad that Ryuji made up with her.

“Ahem,” Akira says, standing a good distance away from Goro.

When Goro hears Akira, he sets down the book and smiles up at him. It’s rare that Goro shows emotion so openly, but Akira’s presence never fails to elicit a response. It makes Akira happy just seeing the joy on Goro’s face.

“Goro,” Akira says cheerily, crouching down next to him. “Did you see Yosuke come in?”

Goro frowns. “No.”

He’s not surprised, considering Goro didn’t even make an attempt to go outside when Souji announced playtime. “Well, he and Souji-sensei were --”

“I don’t need to hear it,” Goro interrupts, raising a hand in the air as if he wants to create a barrier between himself and Akira’s words. His face is scrunched up like a pug’s and Akira can’t hep but giggle at how funny he looks. “I don’t need to hear about how Yosuke and Souji-sensei were kissing or hugging or...whatever it is.”

Ah, maybe Akira shouldn’t have gone into so much detail when he told Goro about the time that he walked in on the two of them in the kitchen.“Sorry,” Akira says.

Goro shakes his head. “It’s okay. What was it that you wanted to tell me, Akira?”

“Oh, right! I saw Yosuke and Souji-sensei kissing —" Goro scrunches up his face "—and Souji-sensei told me that kissing is a way to show how much they care for each other and that because I care for you, I should kiss you!"

Goro frowns. "Souji-sensei says that you should kiss me?" he asks hesitantly.

Now that Goro has re-worded his statement, it doesn't really sound right. But no matter how hard Akira racks his brain, he can't remember the exact order Souji gave him. He remembers the words 'kiss' and how Goro 'would like it' so this must be what he meant, right?

"Yep," he replies confidently, putting his hands on his hips and puffing his chest out importantly. "It's a very special mission given by Souji-sensei and also I like you a lot because you're my best friend and so I want to kiss you, if that's okay with you."

Goro flushes and looks down at his knees. Even though he isn't reading the book anymore, he still pulls it back into his lap. "I don't know..." he says softly. "A kiss is kind of a big deal, right? I read in a book once that it's the most important thing a man and a woman can do."

What did Yosuke and Souji say? Something about romance? Romance is a little icky, and Akira hates it whenever he has to see boys and girls start talking about their _feelings_ in movies or TV shows. But what he feels towards Goro isn't icky at all! It's kind of like the warm and happy feeling he gets whenever his mom gives him a kiss on the head (even though he's much too old for that) but times one hundred.

"That's okay," Akira insists. "We're not a man and a woman! So it's okay for us. Can I hug and kiss you? You can say no if you really don't want to."

He crosses his fingers behind his back and he bites his lip to stop himself from simply dropping to the ground and begging Goro to let him kiss him. He wants Goro to know how much he cares about him!

He didn't think it possible but Goro's face gets even more crimson. It's amazing just how many things Goro can do. Akira's so lucky to have him as a friend. "Alright," Goro says, but his voice is so quiet that Akira has to learn down to hear him. "Alright!" Goro repeats, louder. "Let's k-kiss."

Akira doesn't quite jump up and down and clap, but it's a near thing. Goro still gives him a weird look though, so he probably didn't manage to fully curb his excitement. "Great," Akira says, trying his best to sound cool and unaffected. "Let's...do it."

Now how did Souji and Yosuke do it? It was kind of a quick kiss on the cheek. Akira's not sure if he can get across all of the love he feels in his little body with something like that, but maybe if he does it somewhere else? In all the movies he sees, with the icky kissing, they do it on the lips. It's gross when he sees people do that on the television but somehow, imagining it with Goro isn't so bad. It actually makes Akira feel quite warm.

Goro made no effort to try and stand up, and his face is tilted upwards, his eyes squeezed shut. He looks like he does whenever Akira moves too fast or talks too loud, and Goro instinctively cowers down low with his hands over his head. It's not a look that Akira likes to see very much. In fact, it makes Akira a little sad and a lot mad whenever Goro reacts in that way. He frowns and makes sure that he moves loudly, stomping his feet on the ground. Goro flinches anyway.

"I'm going to kiss you now," Akira announces so that Goro won't be surprised.

Goro nods. "Okay," he says.

Akira leans forward and presses his lips against Goro's. It's warm and wet and surprisingly flavourless. Goro smells really good and so Akira thought he would taste good too, but he doesn't really taste much like anything. He feels Goro take in a sharp breath and he sincerely hopes that it's because Akira tastes super good or something; it would be so embarrassing if it turns out that his mouth is gross.

Goro's lips are soft but a little dry, and Akira darts his tongue out to lap at them a little. He can feel Goro flinch, but thankfully, he doesn't pull away. The kiss kind of hurts, because he can feel his teeth cut into the inside of his bottom lip with how hard he's pressing his face against Goro, but he would put up with pain a thousand times worse than this if it means he can continue to stay so close to his friend.

He asked for a hug too, so he reaches out and threads his arms around Goro's shoulders, holding him close. He can hear the rapid beating of Goro's heart against his chest, and he hopes that Goro can feel his as well. It's pumping so fast that Akira worries he'll have a heart attack, except that would be bad, because then he wouldn't be able to hug and kiss Goro anymore.

"Wh—" Goro says as he leans back, his eyes wide open. He opens and closes his mouth a few times, and Akira smiles brightly. It feels great to make Goro so surprised that he can't even say anything and he chalks it as a little win for himself. "Why did you kiss me on the lips, Akira? I thought this was a friend kiss."

"It is!" Akira insists. He backs away and watches as Goro crawls back a little, pressing himself against the wall. "I love you _this_ much," he stretches his arms to the side as far as he can, wiggling his fingers so that Goro could see just how much he means. "I don't think Souji and Yosuke love each other as much as I like you. Souji only gave Yosuke a stupid kiss on the cheek but I gave you one on the lips like they do in the movies!"

"Akira, I don't think...never mind." Goro sighs.

This isn't the reaction Akira expected. To be fair, he didn't really envision how Goro would respond to a kiss and a hug, but he never thought that Goro would look so unhappy about it.

"I'm sorry," Akira says, looking down at this feet. "I didn't want you to be sad. I was trying to make you happy."

"I am happy, Akira!" Goro replies. "I just didn't think that you would take my first kiss like that."

Akira gapes. He never even thought of that! "I'm so sorry, Goro!" he exclaims.

Goro shakes his head. "I'm not mad about the kiss, Akira. I'm just upset that how it happened."

"Oh no!"

"Come closer."

Akira would do anything Goro asks if it means that Goro will stop being upset at him and he leans down. He got so close to Goro earlier with the kiss but he was so busy thinking about how to pull off the kiss that he didn't get a chance to _look._ Now, he can really focus on Goro's face, with his long thick lashes and perfect skin and big pretty eyes. Akira used to think that his mom is the most beautiful person in the world but she found some serious competition in Goro.

Secretly, Akira sometimes thinks that Goro's prettier. Not that he would ever tell Goro or his mom that, of course.

"What is it, Goro?" he asks.

For a while, Goro doesn't answer. He stares at Akira, those beautiful rust-brown eyes darting here and there as if he's taking in Akira's face. He's not quite sure what Goro is looking at, though, since Akira checked in a mirror before going outside and he made sure there were no crumbs on his face from snack-time. It's not even like he's Goro, with a pretty face or beautiful eyes.

He's just boring old Akira, but he sincerely hopes that Goro enjoys the view.

"Close your eyes," Goro says.

Akira closes them obediently.

"I'm going to show you how I thought our first kiss would go."

The kiss that Goro initiates is simultaneously the most wondrous and most awful experience Akira's ever had. On one hand, Goro is so much better at this than he is that he feels like he lost a match in their ongoing rivalry. In fact, Goro is so much more competent that Akira feels compelled to give Goro _two_ victories for the kiss. On the other hand, the kiss is so much better than what he had done that he can't even worry about Goro taking the lead in their matches anymore.

It's warm and soft, just like before, but Goro doesn't press his face too hard against Akira's, meaning that the sharp nip of Akira's teeth against his lip is absent. All that surrounds him is the wet heat of Goro's lips as he slots their mouths together. Akira can't suppress his quiet moan and Goro reaches up to cradle Akira's cheek in one hand, rubbing aimless circles into Akira's skin.

Like everything else Goro does, the kiss is amazing. Tender and soft, and when Goro breaks away to catch his breath, Akira wastes no time in chasing after him, seeking to place his taste and scent all over Goro. Goro welcomes him, moving the hand from Akira's face to the back of his head, and Akira feels Goro's other arm snake around his waist. He loses count of how many times they peck each other's lips, unable to stop. It just feels so good, with how plush Goro's lips are and how great it feels to be so close with someone Akira loves so much.

Finally, Akira backs off, panting. Goro leans back as well, breathing heavily to catch his own breath. His face is red and judging by the heat collecting in Akira's cheeks, his own probably doesn't look any better. It feels like Akira ran a million miles but instead of feeling tired and sore, he feels exhilarated and energetic. He could do this again and again and again, until he dies, probably.

"That was amazing," Akira breathes hoarsely. His lips feel tingly and dry even though Goro spent so long lavishing them with kisses, and he runs his tongue over them. He doesn't miss the way that Goro's eyes dart down from his eyes to his mouth. "That was an amazing first kiss."

"So we can forget about the time you kissed me and just remember when I kissed you?"

Akira frowns. "Well, no. Because it was my idea to begin with. Just because you kissed better doesn't mean that we should count that as the first kiss."

"Do you want your memory of your first kiss to be that awful one?"

"It wasn't awful! And it really was our first kiss!"

"Your first _what_ now?"

Akira and Goro pause in their argument and stare up. Souji is standing there, looking aghast. It's a rare show of extreme emotion and Akira hurriedly commits the sight to memory so he can describe it to Ryuji later. Yosuke is nowhere to be seen — presumably, he went home or went to work or whatever it is that he does when he isn't dropping in on Himawari unannounced.

Since he did what Souji advised him to do, Akira puffs out his little chest and yells out, "I followed your advice and showed Goro how much I like him and kissed him right on the lips!"

The entire daycare, which had been bustling even throughout Goro and Akira re-confirming their friendship, screeches to a halt. It's so silent so suddenly that Akira's mind fills in crickets, like all the cartoons he's seen on television.

He looks around nervously. "Er, what is it?"

From behind him, he can hear Goro slap his face with his hand, which is an awful shame because Goro's face is so lovely that it should never be marred by bruises, even if they are self-inflicted.

"Akira. Goro. Come with me," Souji says, his smile strained and shaking. He turns to the rest of the kids, who are staring at them wide-eyed. Ryuji's mouth is hanging open, and he's twisting his own cheek as if he desperately wants to wake up from a nightmare. Next to him, Ann mirrors the expression and the action. "We need to have a little bit of a talk. But just keep on playing. We'll have story time a little later than usual."

The last thing Akira hears before he feels Souji's firm hand on his back and steering him away is Mishima's awed, "They're gonna get in _so_ much trouble! They were kissing and they're both boys and they're not even married!"

For a moment, he feels his heart stop in his chest. In trouble? But that would mean getting grounded and yelled at. That would mean disappointed looks and icy-cold dinners taken in silence. He hesitates, feeling a burning heat in the back of his nose, but Goro laces his fingers together with Akira.

"Let's go get yelled at together," Goro says, a small smile on his face.

He looks so confident and fearless, as opposed to his usual quiet self, and Akira feels a blaze of courage flare through his body in response. He tightens his grip around Goro's fingers, pressing his palm fully against Goro's so that he could cling on even harder. "Yeah. There's nothing to fear when you're at my side."

"Oh, you two," Souji sighs.

"That's the spirit, Akira," Goro says and he leans in close, pressing his lips against Akira's. Or he would've had Souji not grabbed Goro by the back of his shirt and pulled him away. Goro doesn't get dragged too far, though, since Akira has such a death grip on his hand.

"Hoo boy," Souji mutters. "Looks like I'm gonna have to call Yosuke back for this one."


End file.
